Israelis left out of West Ham's training trip to the Gulf

West Ham United yesterday denied claims of mistreating their two Israeli players, Yossi Benayoun and Yaniv Katan, who did not take part in the team's training camp in Dubai last week. The Israeli pair were sent to Marbella in Spain with their families while the rest of the squad were in the Persian Gulf emirate. Katan said yesterday that he had a good time in Spain and added: "Sometimes the best thing is not to react," when asked about his feeling at being left behind.

Israeli citizens are not allowed into the United Arab Emirates and are advised by the Israeli Foreign Office not to travel there. Katan joined West Ham in January and has so far started only once in the league. Benayoun, who arrived last summer, is a regular in the starting line-up and is considered a key player. He was substituted during Sunday's 4-1 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and looked unhappy with the decision of his manager Alan Pardew.

Many West Ham supporters questioned on a fans' internet site the wisdom of having a camp in a country with a discrimination policy and with two players not attending. Paul Aldridge, the club's managing director, said: "The trip to Dubai has been planned in principal from very early in the season. Once a date was agreed for the trip we discussed the destination with Yossi and Yaniv and, although they did not wish to travel with the squad, they were insistent that the plans were not altered.

"We were keen to ensure that the benefit we believe the squad will gain from the break was enjoyed by all the players. We therefore arranged a similar break for these two players in Spain, [and] they have also had the advantage of being able to be with their young family.

"We all believe that this trip will be an excellent springboard for the important games that are coming up before the end of the season and a further chance for the squad to bond before the start of next seasons campaign."

Dubai is a popular destination for football teams' camps and in many cases the trips are funded by local businessmen, who hope that wealthy footballers will buy assets there.

Earlier this season Bolton Wanderers had a training camp in the UAE without their Israel international central defender, Tal Ben Haim. Daniel Rueben, a spokesman for Bolton, said: "It was fully agreed with the player that he wouldn't join the team to Dubai, as well as some other players in the squad."